Drums Over Heaven

Their name is almost a Chinese dish and they describe themselves as 'warped world-music fusion' and if that’s not enough to get you interested Drums Over Heaven also have some kick ass tunes. Music-news.com catches up with singer and rhythm guitarist Johnny to find out more.

How did you come up with the name?
We wanted something that sounded tribal and hinted at spiritual matters. On top of that, there's a Chinese dish which has a similar name!

How did you get together?
We were all friends before the group.

How would you describe your music to people?
Indie-esque, warped world-music fusion!

Who are your musical influences?
Tinariwen, My bloody valentine, King tubby, Gang of four, Ian brown, Captain beefheart, Lata Mangeshkar, Dolores O'Riordan, Eddie Reader, Yanis Gotsiras, Rakhi Chakrabarti,U2, The Police, Jimi hendrix, Bollywood film music, Factory records and The Beatles of course!

How would you describe your music to people?
Hopefully something a little out of the ordinary.....

The Indian influences in your music are interesting - why did you decide to incorporate that?

Indian (and African) music is a much overlooked art form. The structures and harmonies are different to western music, which we thought would give a slightly different twist to our sound. Ish, our new singer, has played a large part in this.

Ish has only recently joined. What does she bring to the group?
She can sing better than the rest of us! We love harmonies, so now we can explore that avenue more. We're also hoping to incorporate some Bengali lyrics in the future.

You're sound is very different from a lot of the mainstream music around right now, what do you make of the music scene at the moment? What can Drums Over Heaven bring to it?
I think that "Indie" is more exciting now than it has been for a good few years. Dubstep is also very inventive. West African desert guitar music is fantastic. It's difficult for us to be objective, but I don't know if anyone sounds quite like us.
Most of the songs are concerned in one way another with the human soul and spirit, a sense of justice and the desire for redemption. There are too many songs out there about getting chucked by your girlfriend!

What's your favourite venue to play? And you're favourite song to play?
We just getting ready to start playing live with Ish, but venues like the Dublin Castle have a nice cosy feel and a good PA.
"Light and Shade" is probably the most fun to play.

What are your plans for the rest of the year?
To play live a lot more and to write more tunes that people can't quite pin down!

What are your long-term career goals?
Earnest American rock bands always talk about their "career", we're just doing this for the love of it and friendship!

Finally, why should people check you out?
We've got some decent tunes!

For more info check out www.myspace.com/drumsoverheaven and watch out for more Drums Over Heaven news on music-news.com